Will Wright Talks New Sim City, 'Uncollecting'

Thanks to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer for its interview with Sim City and The Sims creator Will Wright, ostensibly about forthcoming title The Sims 2 - however, Wright also notes that "a new version of 'SimCity' is in early planning stages", lamenting that "'SimCity' kind of worked itself into a corner... We were still appealing to this core 'SimCity' group. It had gotten a little complicated for people who had never played 'SimCity.'" He also espouses his new hobby, 'uncollecting', as he explains, after handing out "lapel pins commemorating the Soviet space program" to the interviewer: "I buy collections on eBay, and I disperse them out to people again. I have to be like an entropic force to collectors, otherwise all of this stuff will get sorted." Update: 05/24 20:10 GMT by S : Commenters note there's a transcript of the same interview with added detail, over at GameSpy.

Comments

Plagarism?

[nkodengar]

A more or less exactly the same conversation took place on GameSpy last week (14th May).

Wright sits down at the café table and holds out a small baggy filled with old Soviet commemorative lapel pins. Wright: Take one. GameSpy: Russian pins? Wright: I'm uncollecting. I buy collections on eBay, and I disperse them out to people again. I have to be like an entropic force to collectors, otherwise all of this stuff will get sorted. It's like the opposing force, uncollectors.

Source: http://www.gamespy.com/articles/515/515914p1.html

Re:Plagarism?

[simoniker]

Interesting, and well-spotted - seems that the writer (Steve L. Kent) sold his raw interview to GameSpy, and an edited one to the Seattle P-I - getting paid twice for doing the same thing is neat!

uncollecting

[CrazyClimber]

I'd be happy to let you "uncollect" my old comic books. My wife would be even happier.

Simcity 3000 is already too difficult for me

[cloudless.net]

I think there should be difficulty modes in Simcity, so beginners can start with "easy mode" with less stuff to care about. By the way, will the next Simcity be truly 3D?

Re:Simcity 3000 is already too difficult for me

[bersl2]

I think there should be difficulty modes in Simcity,

In SC2000, there were. Though the only(?) difference was your starting money (20k, 10k, 10k in bonds).

Re:Simcity 3000 is already too difficult for me

[Orne]

But but, I was told there's a complete three dimensional engine underneath SimCity 4...

You can move the screen up, down, left and right, and you can zoom in and out, and you can rotate... in.. 90 degree blocks... just like you can in Isometric with 2D sprites and 1/4th the hardware requirements. Err...

Re:Simcity 3000 is already too difficult for me

[jafuser]

Sim City 3000 was originally planned to be 3D, and they even got pretty far into the concept. I've still got some screenshots of it on my drive somewhere.

It was abandoned because the hardware requirements were not up to par to handle the simulation and 3d rendering at the time.

I'm hoping they bring back the idea, now that we seem to have adequate hardware for the job. I remember getting so excited about it, only to be given the biggest letdown that 3000 was basically a pretty-ified and dumbed down 2000.

Re:Simcity 3000 is already too difficult for me

[cloudless.net]

Yeah wouldn't it be nice if I can zoom into the streets and decorate the exterior of my own house? Or perhaps even integrate it with The Sims.

Re:Simcity 3000 is already too difficult for me

[Reedo]

You might be interested to know about Children of the Nile. It's a city building game due later this year that's being made by many of the creators of the Caesar/Pharaoh/Zeus series that's completely 3D (you can zoom down into the streets and follow people around) and based in ancient Egypt.

Re:Simcity 3000 is already too difficult for me

[DrEldarion]

Yes, but SC3k isn't anywhere near as beautiful, and as we all know that's what counts (or at least that's what people seem to think...)

Of course, it's not the graphics that are making the requirements so high - it's all the simulation that's going on. I seem to remember reading that traffic routes are a MAJOR CPU hog. A huge city can bring even the most top-of-the-line desktops to their knees.

1: Off topic

[Oncogene]

I find his 'uncollecting' activity to be far more fascinating than any information concerning another Sim City or any developments thereof.

Brings to mind ObeyGiant's take on phenomenology. This scould certainly prove to be a fun project along the lines of GeoHunting.

Re:1: Off topic

[shunnicutt]

I immediately called my ex, who is an avid -- actually, compulsive -- collector and described this new hobby of 'uncollecting'.

His response? 'I hate him.'

uncollecting

[Anonymous Coward]

It's already a successful business model. So successful that most people are familiar with the term 'chop shop'. Take a collection and break it up because the parts are worth more than the whole.

"Uncollecting" games

[superultra]

So, I assume that if he truly feels persuaded by this vast etropic force, him and EA will be selling this new Simcity at cost right? You know, disperse funds back out to people otherwise "all this stuff will get sorted"?

I'll help uncollect!

[Torgo's Pizza]

This is a personal message to Wil Wright. I hear you have a rather large collection of small regtangular green colored pieces of paper. This collection was a result of having so many big selling games. As a friend, I'd be more than willing to help you uncollect these pieces of paper. Please email and we'll set something up!

3D? Nah...

[igrp]

I am not so sure 3D would really work that great for a "Sim City"-style game. All ressource issues aside, isn't the point of "Sim City" to be actually running a city by keeping an eye on the big picture? I always found the decision making process to be most challenging and, frankly, most fun -- just like in the real world, as you're city grows you find yourself unable to please everyone and have to prioritize.

And I am just not sure the more "The Sims"-like approach will work all that well in a "Sim City" game (remember, "Sim Tower" which was about managing just one single building complex but in reality was little more than an elevator management simulation?).

Or, maybe I am just old-fashioned and like my 2D games way too much... ;)

Obligatory Game Screen

[pragma_x]

Information - MyCity4
Founded: 1900AD
Population: 103,245

Your Rating is: Poor
Your current treasury: $3
Your current debt: $-30,000
Citizens claim taxes are too high.
Citizens are demanding more roads.
Citizens are wondering why its suddenly impossible to collect things.
Will Wright is demanding more stuff to uncollect.